FOR RELEASECONTACT – Ernie Edmundson

September 28, 2009or Thea Edmundson 361-790-0103

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20 TEXAS GARDENS TO SEE BEFORE YOU DIE

By: Jeanna C. Godfrey, D.V.M., Master Gardener, Aransas/San Patricio Master Gardeners

Lists are frequent companions of gardeners. Whether organized into categories in an online journal or jotted hurriedly onto sticky notes, lists keep our gardening tasks prioritized, track our expenses, and aid us in choosing the right plant for the right place when we visit the local nursery. Lists can also help us dream. Wish lists provide fuel for daydreaming, whether of the latest garden tools or newly introduced plants we covet, and are especially important on those days we can’t actually get out to enjoy our gardens.

One list every Texas gardener should cultivate is a compilation of gardens to see in his or her lifetime. Those readers with the means and desire to travel worldwide will delight in the book 1001 Gardens You Must See Before You Die edited by Rae Spencer-Jones. For area gardeners wishing to stay closer to home, here is a list of 20 Texas gardens which should be on any local gardeners “to see” list.

Starting in our own backyard, make a visit to the award winning demonstration gardens at Green Acres, associated with the Texas AgriLife Extension Service, 611 E. Mimosa in Rockport. The gardens, planted and maintained by members of the Aransas-San Patricio Master Gardeners, showcase many native plants as well as other introduced plants, which do well in our climate. Go to the Aransas/San Patricio Master Gardener website, for a Green Acres map, calendar of events, and more information about Green Acres demonstration gardens.

Staying in South Texas, don’t forget to spend time at the 180-acre South Texas Botanical Gardens and Nature Center in Corpus Christi. A myriad of gardens await you, including ones devoted to hummingbirds and butterflies, roses, orchids, and plumeria. If you’re a birder as well as a gardener, you’ll enjoy “A Walk on the Wild Side” part of the Great Texas Coastal Birding Trail. More information is available at Another great South Texas garden combining beautiful gardens and excellent birding is The Valley Nature Center in Weslaco

Changing directions and moving north, no list of Texas gardens would be complete without the San Antonio Botanical Center, encompassing the 33-acre Botanical Garden as well as the adjacent San Antonio Garden Center. Officially opened in May 1980, the Center embraces its role of connecting people to plants through experience, education, and research (

One of only two Texas gardens mentioned in the book 1001 Gardens You Must See Before You Die, Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center is a native plant and wildflower Mecca. In addition to the public gardens, woodlands and sweeping meadows of the display gardens, the Center has become a world-renowned research facility. Its Native Plant Information Network has a database of more than 7,200 native species. The Center’s website, has a wealth of knowledge and a Q&A section (known as Mr. Smarty Plants) that can answer almost any gardening question. Other Texas Hill Country gardens worthy of mention include The Natural Gardener in Austin, specializing in organic practices ( Zilker Botanical Garden at the Austin Area Garden Center which includes a Prehistoric Garden recreated as a dinosaur habitat ( and Riverside Nature Center in Kerrville, an urban wildlife and native plant sanctuary (

A “must see” for rose fans, no list would be complete without mention of the Antique Rose Emporium ( The original garden in Independence is home to a myriad of old garden roses as well as other plants and herbs, many Texas natives. There is also a second location near San Antonio. Further east, near Hempstead, the Peckerwood Garden combines sculpture, folk art and an expanding collection of rare plants native to the southern United States and Mexico (

East Texas is home to a number of exquisite gardens. The Ruby M. Mize Azalea Garden is an eight-acre azalea oasis at the entrance to Stephen F Austin State University in Nacogdoches ( In Athens, the East Texas Arboretum and Botanical Society occupy 100 acres of rolling hills with over 2 miles of hiking trails ( Near the coast, you can visit the Mercer Arboretum and Botanic Gardens in Humble ( the Rainforest Pyramid Gardens at Moody Gardens in Galveston ( and the Beaumont Botanical Gardens ( A Texas coastal garden of special note is the Bayou Bend Collection and Gardens in Houston. Administered and maintained by the Museum of Fine Arts, the gracious gardens are divided into numerous outdoor “rooms”. Several garden rooms are presided over by mythological muses, such as the informal Euterpe Garden in honor of the muse of music (

Travelers to North Central Texas have a number of gorgeous gardens from which to choose. Chandor Gardens in Weatherford, once a 4 acre rock-hard cow pasture, is now a serene haven of garden rooms reflecting both Oriental and English garden styles ( Nearby is the Fort Worth Botanic Garden, the self-proclaimed oldest botanic garden in Texas. Its 109 acres are home to over 2500 species of native and exotic plants grouped into 21 specialty gardens, including a rose garden, a conservatory encompassing 10,000 square feet, and a water conservation garden ( In Dallas, no gardeners’ visit would be complete without a trip to the Dallas Arboretum, situated on sixty-six acres nestled next to White Rock Lake. There’s even a one-mile fitness trail compliments of Doctor’s Hospital (

The final garden on our list is familiar to every rose lover and most other gardeners as well. The Tyler Municipal Rose Garden is breathtaking and one of only 24

All-American Rose Selection trial gardens in the country. In addition to roses, a demonstration garden maintained by the Smith County Master Gardeners features over 90 varieties of flowers, trees, shrubs, and other plants. If you are planning a visit to Tyler, the suggested month is October during the annual Rose Festival when the rose display is nothing short of spectacular.

There are many other beautiful gardens, both public and private, scattered across our great State. Make your list and plan on taking your own “garden tour” this fall.

The Texas AgriLife Extension Service - Aransas County Office can be reached by phone at 361 790-0103 or by email at and is located at 611 E Mimosa, Rockport, TX. For more local gardening news, visit the Aransas/San Patricio Master Gardener website

AgriLife Extension education programs serve people of all ages, regardless of socioeconomic level, race, color, sex, religion, handicap or national origin.